New Member on site

[John Wideman]

Let me introduce myself as a new member. My name is John Wideman. I have been a War Between the States enthusiast since early childhood. I had many family members who served in the Confederate army. I have written several related books including "The Sinking of the USS Cairo", Univ Press of Miss, 1992; "Naval Warfare: Courage and Combat on the Waters," part of the Civil War Chronicles series from MetroBooks; "Civil War Torpedoes: A History of Improvised Explosive Devices in the War Between the States," privately published 2012.
The first book about the USS Cairo is pretty much a biography of my great-great-grandfather Zere McDaniel ... spy, saboteur, terrorist, operational head of the Confederate Secret Service run by Gen Gabriel Raines.
I found this site through my continued search for information and noted a thread entry about the explosion at City Point, Virginia, in August 1864. Roger Norton was kind enough to allow me to join.
I wish to be helpful and will publish some things Lincolnian that may be of interest to the other members. After all, my folks tried to kill him a couple of times and failed.
I enjoy spirited debate based on facts with the unknowns plainly defined as unknowns.
https://www.upress.state.ms.us/Books/T/The-Sinking-of-the-USS-Cairo#:~:text=In%201862%2C%20in%20one%20of,It%20sank%20within%20minutes.

This is my book. Plenty of used copies available for cheap. It covers the City Point, Virginia, depot destruction operation in detail but to save time I will do a separate entry on that as well as other things.
I accept constructive criticism.